Atlanta Falcons Defense Strong, Run Game Improved

The Atlanta Falcons close out the 2015 preseason with a victory of the Baltimore Ravens by the slimmest of margins, 20-19 Thursday night.

The Atlanta Falcons had some issues that needed addressing in the final preseason game after falling to the Miami Dolphins last week in Miami Gardens. Atlanta bounced back and played a solid ball game against the Baltimore Ravens.

I could feel the defensive intensity of guys fighting for roster spots in the final preseason contest. There were very few missed tackles and most defensive players struck the ball carrier with authority. While the pass rush wasn’t as dominating as it had been the previous three weeks, it was the Atlanta Falcons ability to force punts on third down that was the difference in last night’s ball game.

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Not including two late touchdown strikes from Baltimore QB Bryn Renner, the Atlanta Falcons defense held the Ravens to a pair of Justin Tucker field goals for most of the night. Rookie DT Grady Jarrett had at least two fantastic plays in the backfield Thursday. He’s going to play very well for the Atlanta Falcons this fall, I can feel it. Jarrett might play undersized, but he is quick as a jack rabbit at defensive tackle.

Tyler Starr has had a strong preseason but his best performance of the preseason came tonight. It seems like the game has finally slowed down for the second-year linebacker out of South Dakota, making heads up plays on both defense and special teams. He made the 53-man roster last year, but I think he can dress out and contribute for the Atlanta Falcons this fall.

Allen Bradford continues to impress with his strong play at both linebacker and on special teams. With Brooks Reed out for six weeks due to groin surgery, perhaps both Tyler Starr and Allen Bradford will play significant snaps for the Atlanta Falcons in at least the first quarter of the season.

In the secondary, Jalen Collins continues to struggle and Dezmen Southward was fighting for his life for a roster spot. Collins did make a nice play on special teams, but did get badly burned on a deep by ball QB Matt Schaub early in the game. He was often late to help out in tackling, too. Southward hit with authority and recovered a key fumble for the Atlanta Falcons. Dez also allowed a touchdown strike late in the game due to poor man coverage.

The secondary appears the main area of concern with this Atlanta Falcons team entering the first week of the regular season. Then again Desmond Trufant didn’t play at all this preseason and I don’t think Robert Alford played very many snaps the last two games in the defensive backfield. I do have confidence in six or so defensive backs on the Falcons roster entering 2015, so maybe it’s not as bad as I think it is. It’s just that the front seven has looked fantastic this preseason that it’s made the secondary look much worse by comparison.

Offensively, Matt Ryan played one snap before Sean Renfree took over. Renfree connected on a touchdown strike to Carlton Mitchell in the 3rd quarter. Like T.J. Yates looked against the Dolphins last week, Renfree improved from his last game against the New York Jets. He wasn’t as efficient as he was against the Tennessee Titans in Preseason Week 1, but Renfree looked capable to back up Matt Ryan.

Perhaps the stars of the night were our two offensive weapons drafted in this year’s draft: RB Tevin Coleman and WR Justin Hardy. Coleman missed the first two preseason games due to a hamstring injury and played sparingly against the Dolphins last week. Last night Coleman showed up big time with 8 carries for 56 yards and a 7.0 YPC average. He looked like the explosive back that was an All-American at Indiana last fall. I can’t wait to see what he’ll do for the Dirty Birds this season.

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